New Jersey officials will hold another round of gun buybacks later this month in Old Bridge, New Brunswick and Perth Amboy.

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But some Garden State residents are wondering if this is really making our communities safer.

"So far nine gun buyback programs have been held all over the state, and we've retrieved over 14,000 weapons, over 1,700 illegal weapons, assault weapons, sawed off shotguns, weapons with an overly large magazine capacity, and over 6,500 handguns," said acting State Attorney General John Hoffman.

While some folks might think this kind of program would not result in weapons used by criminals being collected, Hoffman pointed out that during a recent gun buyback "the police recognized women that were affiliated with gang members, and those women were bringing guns in, they were saying we just can't stand the fact that some of these guns are being put and stored in our house."

He said if there are fewer guns in people's homes, it will reduce the number of accidents and potential tragedies.

"Look at the case of Brandon Holt down in Toms River who was a six-year-old shot by a four-year-old who happened to find guns lying around in his parent's house," said Hoffman. "There are a lot of those accidental shootings that occur."

Hoffman said money for the buyback program comes from forfeiture funds, so the money actually comes from criminals, not the taxpayer.

The state sponsored gun buyback program for the residents of Middlesex County will be held on Sept. 27 and 28 at three churches in the county.

 

 

 

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